Problem: Write the following expression in its most factored form: $8x+4$
To factor a polynomial, you should first try to find the greatest common factor of all the terms. The factors of $8x$ are $1$ $2$ $4$ $8$ , and $x$ and the factors of $4$ are $1$ $2$ , and $4$ The greatest common factor of $8x$ and $4$ is $4$ We can factor out the $4$ and put it before the parenthesis. If we divide each of the terms in the original expression by $4$ we get $\dfrac{8x}{4} = 2x$ and $\dfrac{4}{4} = 1$ So the factored expression is $4(2x + 1)$.